Vehicle advertising



March 31, 1953 ADLER ET AL 2,632,970

VEHICLE ADVERTISING Filed July 11, 1951 T k l uuww FIG.4. 2,,

PIC-3.3. 25

INVENTORS ALBERT A.ADLER HAROLD J.GERBER MJM ATTRNEY Patented Mar. 31,1953 VEHICLE ADVERTISING Albert A. Adler and Harold J. Gerber,Baltimore, Md.

Application July 11, 1951, Serial No. 236,138

2 Claims. (01. 40-129) This invention relates to advertising or animatedpublicity devices and more particularly to the display cards employed inpublic vehicles, usually located in panel spaces adjacent the ceiling orthe sides thereof, in the line of sight of the passengers using thevehicles.

. The conventional display Card used in street cars and buses consistsof a plain flat stiff cardboard sheet, printed with details of thesubject being publicized on the side seen by the public. It is placed inpanels having horizontal grooved members or channels strunglongitudinally near the ceiling of the vehicle in which it is installed.In addition a flat spring of relatively small width is used to cover thejoints between adjacent sheets and snapped vertically into the groovesof the members so as to positively hol them tightly within the panels.This is a simple method of retaining the cards 'in place and has provensuccessful after many years of experience and use. However the type ofpublicity usable by this method is limited since it consists ofconventional printing and illustrations. This invention has beendeveloped to employ the use of cumbrous articles in connection withprinting and illustrations, and in doing so provides arrangementswhereby the articles will be held securely in place in the panel spaces.No. change is made in the panel spaces and grooved members so that theinvention can be used without involving additional expense and labor inconnection with its use. The sheet or display card is used with itprinting applied in the conventional way, but perforations or openingsare made in it in which to insert a commercial article of generalutility, that will attract the attention of passengers in its vicinity.In choosing the article, preference is made for those of such generalvalue and information as to be usable by the average person. In thisregard, animated articles like clocks, thermometers, humidity meters,moving pictures, are preferably used and are commonly available. It ishowever necessary to provide means for carrying the extra weightinherent in some of the articles and retaining them in the card so therewill be positive employe in the moving buses and other types of publicvehicles, even though the article has appreciable weight and size.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved articleof display that will include operating commercial items, such as clocks,thermometers and the like as an additional feature of the publicity.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent as it is more fullydisclosed.

For a better understanding of the invention and its objects reference ismade to the accompanying drawings, which in conjunction with thefollowing description illustrate a particular form of the invention byway of example, while the claims emphasize the scope of the invention.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front view of a display card embodying this invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view through a clock housing and holding bandused in this embodiment, and

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the holding band.

Similar reference characters refer to the same parts throughout thedrawings.

A display card ID of cardboard of similar material as commonly used fordisplay is of rectangular contour, and slightly flexible. Thisflexibility is employed to enable the card to be bent to a slight curveand thereby permits its insertion in the grooves H in the conventionalspaced longitudinal members or channels l2 installed commonly in buses.After the card is bent and so inserted, it is allowed to extend itselfresiliently to a relatively straight position and bind itself in thechannels so it cannot be moved again by vibration or without bending it.To bend it requires a reasonable amount of force. The force tending tobend it and cause it to fall out would be less with a smaller articlethan that induced by a heavy article such as a large clock, If andtherefore the card could not be use by itself to hold such an articlemounted on it.

Therefore to provide means for holding such an article, this inventtionincludes a stiffer holding band it, insertable in the grooves in thesame manner as the conventional spring strap i l used for holding thecard in place and covering the joints between adjacent cards. The bandit is bent similarly but requires considerable force to do so, so thatwhen it is in place in the grooves l2 it is stiff, strong and resilientenough to hold considerable weight. A casing or shell E5, of

26 attached to the clock disc I1. .complete unit in the shell can bemade comparacanopy contour with an opening l6 centrally located in it,to conform with a clock I! adapted to fit in it, is mounted on the faceof the card l so the time may be observed on the clock. Screws l8 passthrough the shell 15 and hold the clock rigidly and securely to it. Aspace is left in the shell for the placement of a small electric battery19 for operating the clock works 21 continuously. The band I3 passesthrough rectangular slots 20 in the rear portion of the shell I to holdthe latter in position. When the end portions of the band are snappedinto the grooves I I they hold the clock and shell securely to the anelspace 2| and ready for use. The card ID has a circular opening 22 in itat a predetermined location. p g

This opening is arranged to fit around the shell l5 at the rear so itwill be clamped about it. The card I0 does not carry the weight of theclock and shell, except to a minor degree but serves as an integralbackground for the articles. However the clock structure is light. Inaddition the band has holes 23 in suitable places to permit theinsertion of screws 25 therethrough and for fastening the bandadditionally to the wall of the panel space 2! and offering extrasecurity to the retension of the articles in place selected afterinstallation.

The card [0 has its special printing and illustration marked on it tosuit the commodity advertised, so that such may be noticed after theclock I! attracts the attention of the observer. Thus the resultingattention is apt to be considerable more than those of cards not soconspicuously presented and without animation. It may be noted that thebattery l9 although relatively small can be used to run a suitable clockaccurately for about a year without replacement. It is held in thecasing or shell 15 by a spring U-clamp Further the tively light, andtherefore the danger of its becoming loosened from the panel space isreduced to a minimum. However the provision and use of the screws 25serve to doubly insure the safety of the unit, against falling.

Other items as previously mentioned can be substituted for the clock,where it is desirable, and fitted to the shell that holds them. Theyoffer material information which the average persons like to have andtherefore give him a positive interest in the article, which in turn is4 next directed to the announcements on the card H1. The advertisingpull of such a display unit, can therefore be readily appreciated.

While but one general form of the invention is shown in the drawings anddescribed in the speciflcations, it is-not desired to limit thisapplication for patent to this particular form, as it is appreciatedthat other forms of construction could be made that would use the sameprinciples and come within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. The combination with the curved face of a portion of a vehicle andthe spaced channels, extending lengthwise thereof, said channels havingundercut grooves therein, of an advertising card having advertisingmatter on the face thereof, said card also having a circular openingtherethrough intermediate the channels, a flat band verticallyintersecting the opening and having its ends secured within the oppositegrooves, said band closely following the curvature of the abovementioned curved face, a shell having spherical walls protruding throughthe aforesaid circular opening, said shell having oppositely disposedopenings near the edge thereof adjacent the card and through which theflat band extends, whereby the shell is securely fastened to and carriedby the said band, the shell also having a circular opening .at the endthereof removed from the card, an indicating device within the shell,said device having a dial face, and means for mounting said device onthe shell so that the dial face will appear through the circular openingin the shell.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1 including additional means forsecuring the band on the curved portion of the vehicle.

ALBERT A. ADLER. HAROLD J. GERBER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 475,726 Foote May 23, 1892884,822 Hume Apr. 14, 1908 1,182,952 Wilke May 16, 1916 2,337,517 WottonDec. 21, 1943

